


How Would You Rate Your Pain?

by theWickedWitchofFeels



Category: Big Hero 6 (2014), Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Dark!Emma, F/F, Gen, Sad, Swan Queen minus the Swan, regina meets baymax
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-05
Updated: 2015-06-11
Packaged: 2018-04-02 23:43:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4078423
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theWickedWitchofFeels/pseuds/theWickedWitchofFeels
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Regina meets Baymax. </p><p>Inspired by this amazing piece: joanacteixeira.deviantart.com/… by JoanaCteixeiraÂ</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Meeting Baymax

Regina sat curled into a ball on the cold stone floor of her vault, her shoulders shaking with sobs. At her feet lay the dagger, gleaming silver with the name staring cruelly back at her. 

 

“Emma! No! There...has to be another way!”

“There isn’t. You’ve worked too hard to have your happiness destroyed!” 

 

But it was - it had been destroyed as surely as if the darkness had taken her, she wished it had - it would be better than this -

Regina sobbed into her skirt, her fingers reaching for the only thing she had left of Emma.

“Regina.” 

A sound like a balloon inflating. Regina raised her tear-stained face from her knees and looked around, too numb to be truly afraid but bewildered. 

A strange figure had appeared in the corner of the room, having apparently been contained in a red box that it now stepped out of. It was not human, but seemingly a humanoid robot, like a huge white marshmallow-like balloon inflated around some sort of mechanical skeleton. It looked at her with its minimalistic face, really only two black eyes spanned by a line, but somehow the face seemed real to her, and infinitely kind. 

“W-what?” Regina breathed. “Who are you?”

“I am Baymax, your personal medical companion.” The robot raised one hand in a stiff, slightly comical wave. “I was alerted to your distress by the sound of crying. On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?”

A screen lit up on Baymax’s wide white belly: a diagram of faces in varying degrees of distress. Regina stared at him, not comprehending. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words formed; her hand clamped over her mouth as another sob seized her. 

Baymax seemed to understand. He blinked at her and waddled closer, kneeling down and gathering the crying woman into his arms. Regina did not resist, burying her face into the robot’s soft white belly.

“It is alright to cry,” he said wisely. “Crying is a natural response to pain. There, there.” 

He looked down, catching sight of the dagger and of the name etched on its surface. 

“Emma...Swan?”

This elicited a fresh sob from his patient. Baymax looked down at her.

“She’s gone,” Regina whispered. 

Baymax tipped his head. “When will she return?” 

Regina closed her eyes. “She’s…” been taken over by the single greatest force of darkness ever known. She shook her head. “I don’t know.” 

Baymax pondered this. “Bringing back Emma Swan will improve your emotional state?” 

Regina looked up blearily.

“Yes.”


	2. What's Disney?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back by request, part two of this...Baymax...thing! (i need to think of a different title. Finding Emma, anyone?) 
> 
> May well keep this going as just a fun little canonverse + Baymax thing (with a bit of angst thrown in there because I am the Wicked Witch of Feels AND this is post-season 4 finale, after all).

“Henry!” 

Regina led the way, shedding her heeled boots at the entrance and pausing when a rubbery screech alerted her to Baymax getting himself stuck in the too-narrow doorway.

Baymax surveyed his situation and, setting down his red charging-box, began to deflate himself slightly until he was able to come in. Henry came to a stop next to his adoptive mother, his jaw dropping at the sight of the nursebot. 

“Wha - ? Baymax?” Henry asked, confused. 

“It would seem so,” Regina said evenly. 

“He’s not a fairytale character, though.”

“He is Disney, technically. As for how he got here, I know nothing more than you do. He just showed up last night in my vault.” Regina watched as Baymax approached Henry, his tiny head tipping. 

“I will scan you now,” Baymax informed Henry. Henry shot Regina a look, but next moment: “Scan complete. You are in good health, except for a slight case of the common cold.”

“My throat has been scratchy,” Henry confirmed. 

“You have been a good boy.” A little hatch in Baymax’s hand opened, and he produced a cherry sucker. “Have a lollypop.” 

“Excellent,” Henry said approvingly, sticking the sucker in his mouth. 

“Okay, enough, you need to get to school.” Regina saw Henry off to get ready and went to her kitchen to fix herself breakfast and a cup of coffee, Baymax following behind her like a lost puppy. 

“What is Disney?” Baymax wondered.

“It’s a company that makes movies,” Regina told him. “It seems a lot of their characters wind up here. You, Elsa, Anna - even I am, technically, Disney.” 

“Is Emma Disney?” 

Regina looked down. “Not technically. She is the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, but she wasn’t in their movie or any typical fairy tale of them. Henry is her biological son, and my adoptive son.” 

Baymax wandered about the kitchen and dining room, apparently cataloging his surroundings. He picked up a picture of Regina and Henry taken several years ago before Emma had come, when Henry had been about nine. 

“Why are you here, Baymax?” 

“I am here to take care of Regina and her family.” Baymax said cryptically. 

“Who sent you?” 

No answer. 

Regina frowned. “How did you even get here?” 

Baymax tipped his head. “I do not understand your question.”

“‘Bye Mom!” Henry rushed into the room to give his mother a hug. She planted a swift kiss on his forehead, before letting him run out to the bus. 

Regina watched him go. “Losing Emma has been hard on him,” she said softly to Baymax, who had come into the kitchen to stand by her. “Well, everything that happened was hard on him. He had to watch me die in front of him, and just a few hours later Emma…” 

“You...died?” Baymax sounded about as confused as a robot could be. “You seem in excellent health.” 

Regina gave a short laugh. “I got better. It’s a long story.” 

She stood, gathering up her purse and stuffing her phone into it. “C’mon. It’s time for work, and we should get you acquainted with the town.” 

 

\---

 

“I am not fast.” 

Baymax waddled as fast as he could after the impatient Regina, drawing more than a few stares from curious townsfolk. 

Regina grabbed the nursebot’s hand and dragged him into the sheriff’s office, where a sullen David Nolan sat at Emma’s old desk. He sat up, startled at Regina and Baymax’s sudden appearance. 

“David, this is Baymax. Baymax, this is David, otherwise known as Prince Charming.” Regina introduced him. 

Baymax looked at him. “You are the father of Emma Swan?” 

David’s jaw dropped, just as his grandson’s had. “Uh. Yes, I am.” 

Baymax extended a hand to shake. “I am Baymax, your personal healthcare companion. I will scan you now.” 

Behind Regina, Mary Margaret rushed in with two bags of takeout from Granny’s, but screeched to a halt upon seeing the nursebot apparently having a staring contest with her husband. “Ah, Regina…?” 

“Scan complete. You seem in fair health, but your blood pressure levels are concerning. I recommend a low-calorie diet and exercise.” Baymax finished his examination and turned his attention to the new woman. 

“And, Baymax, this is his wife, Mary Margaret.” Regina said.

Baymax repeated his introduction to the stunned schoolteacher. He looked between Mary Margaret and David. “I am here to care for the family of Emma Swan,” he informed them.

David looked at Regina. “Where…?”

“I found him last night - or, more like he found me, I suppose. I was in my vault and he just...appeared,” Regina said, shrugging. “He doesn’t seem to know where he came from or how he came to be in my vault.” 

“Bringing back Emma Swan will improve Regina’s emotional state,” Baymax informed the Charmings.

“Yes, I expect it would,” Mary Margaret said, giving the nursebot a distinctly weirded-out look. 

Baymax looked between them. “Does anyone know the location of Emma Swan?” 

A heavy silence fell on the room. Nobody knew Emma’s location - she had disappeared directly after absorbing the Darkness - but it was assumed she was somewhere in Storybrooke or the surrounding woods, hiding out. She wasn’t exactly missing, either; all one had to do was utter her name, but no one had been brave enough to try to summon the new Dark One yet. Regina supposed that since Baymax was technically an inanimate object, his saying her name didn’t count. 

Baymax looked around them. “Emma is here.” 

Or...maybe it did.


	3. A Different Kind of Sickness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaand here's Dark!Emma.

Baymax’s head swiveled to the door, the rest of his body turning as well as the three humans turned, terror gripping them as they saw the newcomer.

Emma Swan stood in the doorway, still dressed in the same white cardigan she’d been wearing when she’d disappeared, but now showing signs of dirt and wear, possibly from being in the forest. Not much seemed to have changed about her general appearance, except for a hard glint in her eye and traces of gold in her retinas. Regina stood between the Charmings and the new Dark One, her magic at the ready.

“You summoned me.” Emma frowned at them all, her gaze settling on Baymax. She didn’t seem surprised by his appearance, but rather discomfited. 

“I am Baymax, your personal healthcare companion.” Baymax waddled forward. He scanned her. “You seem in excellent health, but your neurotransmitter levels are...irregular. Diagnosis: …” He paused, apparently confused. “This is most unusual. My database does not have a conclusive diagnosis for your condition.”

Mary Margaret stepped forward. “Emma - “ 

A wave of her hand, and Mary Margaret sprawled backwards, a dark expression flashing across her face. Her rage, temporarily distracted by Baymax, now focused on her three loved ones as her gaze fell on Regina a few feet behind the nursebot. 

“You.” Emma’s voice was heavy, dead; horrible to hear. But before she could raise her hand against her, wide white vinyl arms wrapped around her from behind. 

“Treatment for emotional distress includes the comfort of family and friends, and also physical reassurance.” Baymax said, oblivious to Emma’s murderous curses as she struggled to break free. 

There was a sharp light as Emma attempted to cast a spell to free herself, but Baymax seemed unperturbed. Regina’s eyebrows rose; the nursebot was evidently immune to magic. 

“PUT ME DOWN!” Emma ordered. 

Baymax’s eyes narrowed in what was apparently his version of a frown. “Bringing back Emma Swan will improve Regina’s emotional state,” he reiterated. “I have Emma, and yet - “ He scanned Regina briefly - “She is not smiling or happy.” 

“Baymax, it’s not that simple…” Regina trailed off, looking sadly at Emma. The blonde former sheriff had stopped struggling, looking at Regina with an indescribable look in her green-gray eyes. Then there was a poof of greenish smoke, and Baymax’s arms were empty. He looked down in confusion. 

Regina bit her lip, her chest seizing with emotion even as her legs shook, forcing her to grab the corner of the desk to steady herself. David and Mary Margaret stood up slowly.

“Baymax?” David said, looking shaken. “Maybe let’s not say her name anymore, alright?” 

Baymax looked at him, expression neutral. “I do not understand.” 

“She’s...evil, Baymax.” Mary Margaret tried to explain. 

“And every time you say her name, she comes. I’m sorry I didn’t mention that earlier.” Regina closed her eyes in pain, drawing concerned glances from all three of her current companions. “Come on, Baymax, I’d best be getting to my office.”

Regina left, not bothering to slow down for Baymax; she only knew she needed to get out of there before the Charmings noticed her emotion. The nursebot waddled rapidly after her, following her across the street to Regina’s mayor's office. 

 

“I am not fast.”

Regina ignored him. She sat brusquely in her chair and set about her work for the day, trying her hardest to put the incident out of her mind. Baymax wandered the office, peering out the window at the street full of Storybrooke residents.

“Regina, your neurotransmitter levels are low,” Baymax noted worriedly. “I am your nurse bot. I would like to help.” 

Regina continued to ignore him, but the nursebot persisted. “I do not understand. Why were you not happy that Emma was there?”

“She...it’s complicated, Baymax. She’s...sick.” Regina explained as if to a small child. “And I am worried about her.” 

“I sensed unusual symptoms, but nothing that matched any diagnosis in my database.” Baymax said in confusion. 

Regina shook her head, her eyes downcast. “It’s a different kind of sickness.” 

Baymax fell silent, black eyes focused on her. “Bringing back Emma Swan will improve your emotional state. My job is to take care of Emma Swan’s family.”

Regina tipped her head. “Then why are you following me around? Why not Henry, or the Charmings? They’re her family, not I.” She looked down to conceal the tears that sprang unbidden to her eyes.

Baymax did not respond to that.


	4. Monster

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shortish, but here we focus on Emma. Don't worry, we'll get back into some Baymax shenanigans next chapter.

Labored breathing echoed through the cold stone walls of Regina’s vault, though the harsh sound did not belong to the crypt’s owner. It belonged to the new Dark One, though now she appeared little more than the mere woman she had once been, dirty, disheveled, her long blonde hair ratted and dulled by her misery. 

Emma didn’t know why she was now so drawn to Regina’s vault. Certainly, if Regina knew that she was coming here without her, and without permission - well, not that she could do much against her, anymore, but. Was it the residual darkness she could sense clinging to the place, from the Evil Queen Regina had once been? No. She had plenty of that of her own now, only if anything even stronger. 

No…

\---

Emma cast about in panic as the darkness swirled about Regina, sucking the light and the life out of the woman, and all she could think was no, this could not happen. Not to her -

“We have to tether it to a person to contain it!” Emma yelled above the rushing of the dark power.

She lunged forward, dagger in hand. 

“Emma! No - there has to be another way!” In the midst of it, Regina’s eyes widened in terror as she realized what Emma was about to do.

“There isn’t!” That much, Emma was certain of. “You’ve worked too hard to have your happiness destroyed!” 

She said her meager goodbyes to Hook, to her parents - she hoped they understood - but there was no time now, Regina was staggering under the darkness. She thrust the dagger deep into the heart of the darkness, and immediately felt it draw to her, filling her like a thousand lightning bolts but of pure, unadulterated power. She saw it pull clear of Regina, the brunette stumbling back with a look of utter horror on her lovely face, and did she imagine the tears in her eyes?

Emma could barely stay on her feet as the dark tendrils entered her, seeming to strike at her heart before anything else. Agony filled her as the dark powers did battle with the light in her, and for the first time the light found itself far outmatched, dying under the deluge of darkness like flame under a downpour. 

She kept her eyes open, though, fastened on her loved ones even as her vision flickered. Hook - Snow - David - 

Regina. Standing horror struck in the stiff arms of her lover, watching Emma be consumed. Tears now clouded Emma’s vision. He is her happy ending, Emma. You are simply a fool.  
-I am… so sorry.-

Emma was nearly gone now, her lungs gasping for air as the darkness overcame her. But with her last conscious thought, she clung not to Hook, but to her true love, Regina - and she wished…

-Take care of her, Baymax. Take care of her...because I can’t anymore.-


	5. You Have No Idea What I Am Capable Of

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, sorry, Robin is in this one :/ Mostly because I love Roland, and I wanted Emma to threaten him (Robin, not Roland). So. Other than that this is kind of a rambling chapter. As I try to figure out what the heck I'm trying to do with this.

“Baymax.” Regina sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose in mild exasperation. She needed to get off this topic of conversation. “If you want to help me, you could go get some takeout for me from Granny’s.” 

The nursebot waddled up to her, nodding eagerly. Regina fished for her purse and pulled out a twenty dollar bill.

“Here. Just go and ask Ruby for my usual. When she gives it to you bring it back here and don’t forget the change.” Regina told him. 

Baymax nodded again and waddled out of the office. Regina watched him go with a pang. Once, that had been Emma. 

\----

 

The white marshmallow-like robot, needless to say, drew the curious gaze of many a Storybrook citizen on his short (but slow) walk down to the local diner. Baymax’s head swiveled in curiosity, taking in the people around him.

He had to squeeze to get in the door of Granny’s, but he managed to do so without letting out too much air. He scanned the diner and approached the woman at the counter, an elderly woman with silver hair and a no-nonsense expression on her face.

“Are you Ruby?” he asked. 

The woman shook her head. “I’m her Granny. Actually that’s what most everyone here calls me. RUBY!” 

A much younger, vividly red-headed woman emerged. “Yeah - wait who are you?”

Baymax raised his hand in his customary wave. “I am Baymax, Regina’s personal healthcare companion. She sent me here for her usual.” He placed the money on the counter. 

Granny nodded brusquely at Ruby, who understood and quickly set about getting the order together. Baymax waited patiently, but as he did he felt small arms hug at his wide belly, and he looked down to see a small child looking up at him adoringly. 

“Daddy!” The little boy looked up with huge brown eyes half-hidden under a mop of curly brown hair. “Daddy it’s a big marshmallow!” 

“Roland…” Baymax looked up from the child to find himself face-to-face with his father, a roguish-looking man that he couldn’t help feeling an aversion to. He narrowed his electronic eyes. “That’s not a marshmallow, it’s...I’m not sure.” 

“I am Baymax, Regina’s personal healthcare companion.” Baymax said. 

The man tipped his head in confusion. “You’re new. Well, I’m Robin Hood.” 

Ah. That was why. Baymax had been...warned...of this particular character. Still, Roland was adorable. And Baymax was not designed to hurt people. 

Baymax looked back down at Roland. “You have been a good boy. Have a lollypop.” 

The child took the proffered sucker with surprised glee and bounced happily back to his father just as Ruby handed the bag of food and some change to Baymax. 

“Thank you.” He frowned at Robin. “I have been told to give you a message.” 

Robin narrowed his eyes. “By whom?”

“I cannot say. But she told me to tell you that you ‘sure as hell better make her happy, or you will feel the full force of my rage. And believe me, you have no idea what I am capable of.’” 

Unfortunately, Baymax’s slowness and bulk made a dramatic exit more comical than anything else. He waddled out onto the street and was about to start his slow walk back to Regina’s office when he felt himself being dragged by fistfuls of vinyl into an alleyway. 

“I am not - “

“Fast, yeah, I know.” It was Henry. Baymax frowned slightly in bewilderment. 

“I must get this sustenance to Regina.”

“Her kale salad can wait a bit. I need to talk to you.” Henry whirled to face the nursebot. “I’ve been thinking about this all day. Did my mom send you?” 

“I am not allowed to say.” Baymax said carefully.

“Well, you appeared literally right after she became the Dark One.” Henry paused. “You said that you were sent to take care of Emma Swan and her family.”

Baymax nodded. Henry gritted his teeth.

“I need you to help me - “

Poof. 

“You said the name.” Baymax said reproachfully. 

 

\---

 

“SHIT! I mean SHOOT - I SAID SHOOT!” 

“I heard that kid!” 

“RUNNNNNNNNN!” Henry ran into Baymax full-force, shoving the robot onto his stomach and starting to literally roll him out onto the street, narrowly avoiding David’s pickup. Thinking quickly, Henry vaulted into the back of it and tried to drag Baymax on board.

“DRIVE!” Henry yelled at David, spotting the now royally pissed-off Emma. David obliged, flooring the gas just as Henry succeeded in pulling Baymax into the truck with him. 

Poof. 

Great...he’d forgotten Emma could do that now. 

“MOOOOOOOMMMM!” Henry yelled as David roared past the mayor’s office. Inside, Regina looked up just in time to see the truck go by. She sighed and put her head in her hands. 

Strangely, Emma made no attempt to hurt Henry, David, or Baymax. She just clung to the side of the pickup truck, a huge grin on her face. Then she was gone, as quickly as she’d came.   
Henry rapped on the window.

“She’s gone!” 

David slowed and stopped, the change of velocity slamming Henry and Baymax into the back of the cab. Henry remained where he was slumped, seeming saddened. Baymax frowned and put a hand on the boy’s shoulder. 

“On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?” 

Henry blinked, not understanding. “That wasn’t the Dark One. That was...my mom. That...I don’t understand.” 

Regina ran up to the pickup truck. “Henry! Are you all right?” She caught her son as Henry vaulted over the side of the pickup truck, leaving Baymax to hop carefully to the ground and sidle up to Regina, a little bit sheepishly.

“Baymax - “ Regina began, but the nursebot simply held up the bag of takeout, somehow still intact.


	6. Hymn for the Missing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ha, ha. Still rambling. Angsty rambling this time instead of awkwardly funny rambling though.

“Mom, we have to find a way to help her!”

“I am, Henry, it’s just - it’s not that simple - “

“You’re the most powerfully magic person in Storybrooke now, except for her. There has to be something!”

“You think I’m not looking?” Regina’s voice broke. “I have looked everywhere, in every book I have and every book that Gold has. There is nothing - no counterspell - “

“True love’s kiss breaks every curse.”

“Hook already tried doing that, and he nearly died doing so.”

“Maybe Hook isn’t her True Love, then.” 

“Who else, Henry? You?” Regina’s voice was shrill and sharp with desperation. 

“You. You stopped the trigger together, you rescued me together - “

“Those were…” Regina paused. “Isolated incidents.”

“No, they weren’t!” Henry sounded on the brink of tears, which sadly recently wasn’t unusual. “That was you and her working together better than I’ve ever seen her work with Hook, or you with Robin for that matter.”

“Don’t - “ Regina said sharply, “bring Robin into this.”

“Robin wasn’t the one who saved your life in the topsy-turvy Enchanted Forest fiasco!” Henry yelled. “He’s the one who believed Zelena over you. Emma chose to sacrifice herself to save you -”

“You weren’t even there!” 

“I should have been!” Henry’s face crumpled. “If I had just -” 

Regina’s face softened as a tear slid down her son’s face. “Henry…” she said softly. She reached out a hand to him but he wrenched his arm away, tears falling faster. He ran from the living room, taking the steps two at a time to his room. 

Regina slumped to her knees. Baymax came out to her from where he’d been standing in the kitchen, listening to mother and son argue. “He blames himself.” Baymax said, his eyes narrowing in worry. 

Regina did not answer. She stood and in a poof she was gone.

 

\---

 

She was in the cemetery where her vault was located, but she wasn’t at the vault. She’d poofed out of a desire to escape with no real sense of location; so she was surprised to find herself kneeling a few yards behind a gravestone she recognized as Neal’s. Henry’s birth father and Emma’s…

“Regina.” The same deadened voice, but there was some undertone that was Emma, but dully, as if all the fight had gone out of the blonde. She was kneeling before Neal's gravestone, staring at the inscription with hands clenched into tight fists. 

“I’m sorry - “ Regina readied herself to poof away, but she paused when Emma looked up at her.

There was no trace of Dark One magic in her eyes. This was Emma - but an Emma Regina had rarely seen. This was not the hotheaded woman who had chopped off a limb of her apple tree. This was a woman whose grief had consumed her, and whose regrets - 

“Don’t go. I promise you, I’m in control.” Emma’s wide blue-gray eyes found Regina, in an expression that resembled little more than a lost puppy. 

Regina nodded shortly and knelt beside her. 

“How are you feeling?” she asked feebly.

“Lonely,” Emma answered truthfully. 

“Why are you here?” 

“I’ve been coming here often. Talking to Neal...I know, it’s crazy, but it helps me calm down, and when I’m calm the darkness isn’t as...” painful. 

“Henry misses you. So do your parents, Hook…”

“I know. But it’s too...I don’t know if this is part of being a new Dark One and if I’ll calm down over time or not, but it’s too strong. I’m so scared I’ll hurt one of them, I can’t…” 

Emma paused. “I’ve been thinking.”

“That’s a risky endeavor.” 

“Ha. No...its just...I’ve wondered that if Neal were here, could he have lifted this curse.”

Emma looked at her, her eyes now clouded, unfocused with something inexplicable hidden in their depths.

“But then I realized. Even back then, in Neverland, Neal was a fucking idiot. So was Hook.”  
Regina stifled a derisive snort, determined not to ruin the moment.

“And we...we moved the moon together, Regina. And when I got my memories back, yours was the first face I saw.

“And I...I threw that all away for Hook. Loving him was the easy road, but I lost myself along the way. And for that I am sorry.” 

She stood, tears glimmering in her eyes. “Regina, I promised you I would bring your happy ending, and I have. Please, just...don’t make my same mistake.” 

Regina opened her mouth to speak, but before she could Emma disappeared in a cloud of whitish smoke. 

Her face crumpled. “I already have.”


End file.
